TEHRAN – Saeed Khatibzadeh, the former spokesman for the Iranian foreign ministry, has been appointed as Iran’s ambassador to Croatia. 

The newly-appointed ambassador met with Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian on Tuesday on the eve of his departure to Croatia. They exchanged views about matters related to Iran-Croatia relations and bilateral cooperation. 

In this meeting, Amir Abdollahian mentioned the importance of cooperation in the area of Balkan countries, especially Croatia and emphasized the all-round expansion of relations and Tehran's efforts to further strengthen relations with Zagreb, according to a statement by the Iranian foreign ministry. 

Previously, Khatibzadeh held the positions of advisor to the Minister of Foreign Affairs, spokesman and head of the Public Diplomacy Center of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and Director General of the Office of Political and International Studies.

Iran enjoys good relations with Croatia, which are mostly dominated by arts, sports, and trade. 

Last year in June, a delegation of Croatian lawmakers visited Tehran and met with Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf. In this meeting, Qalibaf mostly spoke about U.S. sanctions on Iran but he also touched on the need to boost trade ties between Iran and Croatia. He said, “Parliamentary friendship groups of the two countries can multiply the economic relations of the two countries by activating these relations more than before and facilitating trade relations.”

In the meeting, Qalibaf offered congratulations on the 30th anniversary of the official establishment of relations between Iran and Croatia and expressed hope that the parliamentary relations between the two countries would become more active.

Underlining that Iran and Croatia have recognized their friends in difficult times, Qalibaf said, “The difficult days of the Balkan War brought us together, sustained relations, and perpetuated it in the memory of states and nations.”